Review: Legend of Korra “In Harm’s Way”

If you’re the Avatar, you’re almost always in harm’s way. Just sayin’…

This show has got to have the absolute worst lead-in in the history of television. In Witch Way is a terrible show. That is your “FYI” of the night.

Spoilers Below!

The super secret prison in the Northern Water Tribe’s land is still secure, until Zaheer and his gang make their way to the prison.  Tonraq and the twins engage Zaheer, Gahzan, and Ming-Hua. The twins are defeated rather easily, with Ming-Hua free to break into the prison. This battle scene looks phenomenal, especially with highlighting Ming-Hua’s water arms. and is a real credit to Studio Mir.

Ming-Hua makes it in, and breaks out P’Li. P’Li has a third eye on her forehead, which is generally very foreboding.They make it up, and Zuko’s dragon breathes fire on P’Li, who is just energized by the blast.  By now, badass Zuko joins the fight, but is defeated by Ghazan. Tonraq almost got killed by P’Li, but his ice wall saved him from the brunt of the explosion. Zaheer and the rest escape on the tractor, with with Tonraq and Zuko left behind, presumably to lick their wounds.

In Ba Sing Se, Tu acquired the passports Bolin and Mako needed to get into the upper ring. They have to cut their family visit short. Elsewhere, Korra is letting off steam with Asami as her bag holder. As she keeps thinking about the Earth Queen, she gets even more angry, and airbends a pretty fierce kick. Asami needs a break, because Korra hurts when she’s angry. Mako and Bolin makes it back, and tell her that the Earth Queen has been kidnapping airbenders for her army.

Coincidentally, the Earth Queen shows up, and gives Korra news that there are Airbenders in the Yang province. Korra poorly feigns how good the news is, and the encounter takes a comical turn when the Earth Queen has an allergic reaction to Pabu, who is hiding in Bolin’s shirt. The Earth Queen  wants them out by the evening, but Asami buys them until morning due to a “broken” engine.

On the ship, the team has a meeting about the kidnapped Airbenders. They have no idea where to look, until Mako says to look under Lake Laogai. Mako learning to read is dangerous. Anyway, it was an old Dai Li fortress back when, and they think that is the best place to look. Jinora says she can still project her spirit into the fortress, to everyone’s surprise. It’s not as strong as it was during Harmonic Convergence, but still strong enough to get the job done.

Inside the fortress, a Dai Li agent tells the Airbenders that they will be the Queen’s personal guard. Kai takes it easy on his sparring partner, but when the agent tells him to show no mercy, he takes down the guy in one attack. Outside the lake, Tenzin, Jinora, and Korra set up Jinora so she can get inside the fortress. She has to navigate through the water catacombs, and finds out that no one is there. They try to figure out wherever the Airbenders are, but there are too many hiding places. Korra asks how Jinora found her during Harmonic Convergence, and it was because they had a connection. So, Korra suggests to use that way.

Kai is still training, and he helps his friend again. That sets off the Dai Li agent, who bombards him with stones. When Kai goes to attack the agent, he gets encased in stone, and taken off to a prison cell. That’s where Jinora finds him. Kai has no idea where here is, so she levitates up to the surface, right up to the Queen’s palace. Of course, Korra finds out, and is really pissed. There’s a knock on the ship’s door, and it’s Lin Beifong. She’s to put Korra under protective custody, because Zaheer and his gang are after her. No one knows their motives, not even after thirteen years of interrogation. Lin tries to get her to go, but she resists even more. She won’t leave without the airbenders, so Lin decides to help, so they can get back.

Jinora walks up to the Dai Li guards, and runs a distraction to incapacitate the guards. They make it in to the compound. Korra, Bumi, and Tenzin split to find the airbenders, while Jinora, Mako and Bolin go find Kai. Korra’s team finds the airbenders, and Kai’s friend tells them to find Kai. The airships lift off, as Kai is found by Jinora’s group. Kai shows something that resembles real remorse. They get trapped by the Dai Li, while Korra and all of the Airbenders are trapped by the Earth Queen and the majority of the Dai Li. The Dai Li go to capture the group, with every Airbender keeping the Dai Li at bay. Downstairs, a Dai Li guard captures Jinora, which enrages Kai, and they set her free. Back upstairs, Korra and Tenzin play defense for the ships, when they find Jinora’s group under attack by the Dai Li at the compound. They get away to a free town, where all of the free Airbenders decide to go to the Northern Air Temple to train with Tenzin and Jinora. The team splits off, with Korra going off with Lin, and Tenzin going north to the Air Temple.

This episode was pretty killer. The Earth Queen is a shady bitch, and got what she had coming to her. All of the fight scenes have been ridiculous this season. I haven’t found a fight that came anywhere near what I saw with the fight at the Northern Water Tribe in this series, and am hard pressed to find one in any show on television right now. Studio Mir killed it. And everyone who worked on the show needs a serious pay raise.

I like how this felt like the end of “act one,” meaning that the first major story was told, and they are on their way to go forward with something else. It feels rather like Star Wars to me, meaning that there are definite acts within the movie that break the movie into two parts. Korra had this before, but it happened really late last season, where the first 8 or nine episodes sputtered to tell the first act. That left the last few episodes to speed through to the end. The pacing here seems to be really good for a change.

This season seems to take the best of books one and two, and make a fantastic book three so far. Not surprisingly, this is the crown jewel in the abysmal Friday lineup that Nick threw together. And, for the love of god, please put something on before Legend of Korra that’s better that the garbage on now? You may see more ratings than what you see now.